My wedding gift mixer (a Sunbeam Mixmaster) turned 33 a week before Christmas, and my husband thought it was time for me to have a new one.He gifted me on Christmas with the KitchenAid 5 Qt. Artisan in white.I love this mixer and leave it out on my counter, something I never did with the Mixmaster.I recently purchased the citrus juicer attachment from Amazon and am very pleased with it as well. I have not read all 109 previous reviews on this site, but I have read a few that were disgruntled because their Artisans did not mix well.I initially had the same problem with the beater/bowl clearance. It is very simple to remedy.There is a beater adjustment screw on the mixer and the manual describes how to make the adjustments.I got even better instructions by calling customer support at KitchenAid. The technician told me to drop a dime into the empty bowl, turn the mixer on (about setting 2) using the flat beater, and it should move the dime 1/4" to 1/2" each time it rotates around the bowl. This is the right clearance for the beater to mix everything at the bottom of the bowl, but not low enough to cause wear on the beater from constant friction with the bottom of the bowl during usage.I tweaked the screw setting 1/4 turn each time until I got that dime moving. At this setting, I can now beat a single egg white to stiff peaks in the 5 qt. bowl.That's impressive.This mixer is as sturdy as a tank, and you can hear the quality as it mixes.Although I had previously purchased a KitchenAid mixer for my daughter as a gift, I would never have splurged on one for myself.I am so happy my husband thought I was worth it!
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In short, don't be.Most of the relatively small percentage of negative reviews on this mixer fall into one of three explainable categories, so if you're considering it, follow along:
The most worrisome category of complaints about this mixer involves a very small number of stories about the food-grade grease that lubricates the internal bearings leaking out of the mixer and into the food-bowl.Although reported in only a tiny percentage of reviews, this was probably the one complaint that worried me the most, simply because if true, let's just say it:it's disgusting.
The first thing to keep in mind in evaluating this complaint is that EVERY electric mixer requires lubricated bearings.Changing models or brands won't change that, and although there may be design differences that make the possibility somewhat different across various models, it's just going to always be there to some degree on every mixer.It's pointless to waste time, in other words, worrying about something that is going to be a possibility on ANYTHING you can possibly buy.So that's the first category.
The second category category of complaints has to do with the mixer dying somehow, either arriving dead or dying quickly.It seems a lot of these complaints are dated from 2007-2009, so maybe there really *was* something going on, but those seem to have tapered off.For the rest, I can only say that speed matters:2=LOW for dough, 4=MED for batter, and 6=HIGH for creaming.Speeds 8 and 10 are ONLY for whipping air into cream or egg whites with the wire whisk.Anything faster than 2 for kneading dough and you're literally playing with fire.
I can say this with the authority that only comes from wrecking a lot of motors.The quickest way to burn out an appliance is to exceed the available power with the requested load, so the number one way to kill a mixer is to simply add a large quantity of sticky dough and then crank up the dough hook while saying "if 2 is good, then 4 is better and 10 is best."Turning up the speed increases the load, leaving the motor with no reserve capacity as the dough gets tougher.The result is easy to predict.
The second way to kill an electric motor, surprisingly (and you won't be warned about this one by the manual) is to use it with an extension cord, especially a light-duty one.This is the appliance equivalent of running a race while breathing through a straw.You don't run your stove that way, you don't run your refrigerator that way, and you shouldn't run your mixer that way, either.Even WITH the recommended amount of dough, and AT the recommended speed (2), you can still kill it this way.(Please see the comments on this review if you're interested in more discussion on this).
Anyone who is unaware of either of these points will naturally and understandably blame the mixer when it starts smoking and burns out.I'm certainly not saying one of these types of abuse explains every single case of mixer failure--there have to be SOME manufacturing defects--but I'd be willing to bet one of these two things explains 8 out of 10 of them.If you really do need a mixer for large quantities of dough every day, then please invest in a commercial-grade mixer like a twoto four-thousand dollar Hobart mixer, where the designers KNOW the duty-requirements you have in mind.You shouldn't try to haul two tons of rock with a half-ton pickup truck all day and expect it to last, nor should you make the equivalent mistake with a mixer.
The remaining category of complaints seems to be some version of the beaters hitting the bowl.This is a simple adjustment that has been covered elsewhere, but if you missed it, all you need to do is place a dime in the bowl and use the adjustment screw (in the crook of the tip-up hinge) to lower or raise the flat beater until it moves the dime just 1/4 to 1/2 inch on each sweep.This is only end-user adjustment you'll ever need to make, and it likely solves the entirety of the remaining category of complaints I read about.
I decided to take a chance on this mixer despite the negative reviews, after thinking it through in this way, and I'm very happy with it so far (and wow, is it ever better than the old Sunbeam stand mixer I had for ages!)If it ever quits or I change my mind about it, I'll let you know; otherwise, the deal on Amazon is as good as you'll find.(UPDATE:That last comment was made back when this mixer was selling for $229, but the price has risen dramatically since then.The rest of my review still stands...)
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I have celiac disease, which is essentially an allergy to wheat protein, and I've been GF for 5 years now. (Why does that sound like I'm at an AA meeting?) When I first started baking all my own breads, cakes, etc., from scratch, the books said that I needed a bread machine. I bought one and it didn't work so well with the GF "funny flours." A book finally told me to forget about the machine, buy a stand mixer and use the oven. Brilliant!
I bought my Kitchenaid and haven't looked back. I use this thing at least twice a week, sometimes every day. I don't know how I lived without it. My mom just bought one after she saw me calmly measuring stuff and dumping it in while the mixer mixed all by it itself. (She's been suffering with a handheld all these years.) Stand mixers also mix more thoroughly than handhelds. They also can mix chocolate chip cookie dough all the way to the end of the flour additions.
I've had my Kitchenaid for about 5 years now, though 3 moves, and it's still as sturdy and reliable as the day I bought it. The paint is still perfect. Not a scratch. Certainly not a chip. It's beautiful and lustrous. I have Onyx Black. While I like the look of the Onyx a lot, it's obvious if there's a little flour dusting the top of it. This makes it convenient to clean, but if you don't use it very often but do want it out, you might want to choose a lighter color that won't show dust.
Caveat: It's heavy. B/c I use mine so much, I display it on my counter, drag it forward, use it, wipe it off with a damp rag, and push it back. (And wash the bowl, of course.) But it's worth it's weight in gold. They are a lovely appliance. Not like a frumpy toaster.
Also, a previous review somewhere said that it left dry ingredients in the bottom of the bowl and didn't incorporate them. There's an adjustment screw that you have to fine-tune before you use it. Instructions are in the booklet. I adjusted mine before I used it for the first time (I compulsively read instructions,) and never had that problem.
Buy yourself a proper mixer. You'll be so glad you did.
TK Kenyon
Author of Rabid: A Novel and Callous: A Novel
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First, the mixer works great.Everything most home-bakers could ever want.But I strongly suggest you select a smooth finish.I got the Krinkle Gray. (Don't know if thats still available.)It looks very 'professional', but it's hard to keep clean.After the first batch of bread dough, the mixer was nearly white, and it took some serious scrubbing to get the flour off the textured surface.As to the mechanics of the mixer itself, very few complaints.The tilt-head makes it possible to remove the bowl without dismantling the beater (unlike the lift-bowl models).I mainly use the dough hook, and have found that the motor tends to bog down just a bit on extremely heavy doughs. But as I always do the final kneading by hand anyway, its not a major issue; just a little more hand work.
If I ever buy another stand mixer, it will definately be a KitchenAid.Thing is, this mixer will probably outlast me by decades.
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